Using Analytic Techniques to Add Meaning to Data
Instructions
Select a business of which you are a part or in which you have interest and download the raw data on the company’s stock history. Any business that has practical meaning for you is appropriate for this assessment.
Follow these steps to locate and download stock history from Yahoo! Finance:
Go to Yahoo Finance.
Search for and find the stock of the company you have chosen.
Click on the “Historical Data” tab. Then select the following settings above the table:
Select Time Period of one year.
Select “Historical Prices.”
Select Frequency as “Daily.”
Click Apply.
Click on “Download Data.” Go to the bottom of your screen or your Downloads folder to open the Excel file you just downloaded. Open the Excel file. Check to be sure that you have enough lines to show the whole year. If not, reset the settings at the top of the Historical Data chart and try again.
Once you are sure that you have a year’s worth of data, save the Excel file.
Using the Excel file with the year’s stock data, conduct descriptive analysis as follows:
Create a scatter plot of the highest stock price (in the column labeled “High”) against time. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you created this graph.
Create a scatter plot of the lowest stock price (in the column labeled “Low”) against time. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you created this graph.
Create a histogram of the adjusted daily closing stock price (in the column labeled “Adj Close”). Make sure the histogram is meaningful by adjusting the bin size so you can see the shape of the histogram. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you created this graph.
Create a histogram of the stock trading volume (in the column labeled “Volume”). Make sure the histogram is meaningful by adjusting the bin size so you can see the shape of the histogram. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you created this graph.
Calculate the mean, median, mode, and standard deviation of the adjusted daily closing stock price. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you calculated these statistics.
Calculate the mean, median, mode, and standard deviation of the stock volume. Write a sentence explaining the process by which you calculated these statistics.
Prepare a report that you would present to your supervisor, including the following:
An APA-formatted title page.
A one-page introduction of your chosen company, including the company background and practical business context.
A section headed Graphical Representations of Data, in which you include the four graphs you created above and a summary of the processes by which you created each graph.
A section headed Descriptive Statistics, in which you include the statistics you calculated above and a summary of the procedures you followed to calculate the statistics.
APA-formatted in-text citations and a corresponding references page. Remember to cite the source of your financial data.
Walk through: You may view the following media piece to help you understand concepts addressed in this assessment:
Using Analytic Techniques to Add Meaning to Data Walk through.
Additional Requirements
Length: 3–5 pages, double-spaced. Include a title page and the graphical representations of the data selected.
Written communication: free of errors that detract from the overall message.
Competency 2: Use analytic and statistical techniques to make meaning of large quantities of data.
Create four different graphical representations of data.
Calculate descriptive statistics for two different variables.Summarize the processes by which each graph and statistics were created and calculated.
Competency 4: Present the results of data analysis in clear and meaningful ways to multiple stakeholders.
Introduce the company and practical business context.
Correctly format citations and references using current APA style.
Write content clearly and logically with correct use of grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
